The Philadelphia 76ers are inches closer to becoming the championship favorites of the upcoming season. After a bitter experience with James Harden, the Sixers are set to open their doors for another superstar, Paul George. The 34-year-old star, who declined a $48.7 million player option, has entered free agency. Amidst the franchises’ race to hunt down PG, Philly has the necessary cap space to lure the star. At the same time, the side didn’t forget to keep their rising star, Tyrese Maxey, happy.

The Sixers made a decent steal in the 2020 NBA draft by roping in Maxey as the 21st pick. The rising star signed a 4-year contract worth $12.1 million with RFA (Restricted free agent), growing into a second fiddle for Joel Embiid. In the last season, he finished with a career-high average of 25.9 ppg. Now that he entered free agency, the latest report stated that the 23-year-old might have fortune waiting for him at the front door.

Marc Stein, the trusted NBA insider, revealed that Daryl Morey will enable a $200 million 5-year contract to Maxey after “after first making full use of their cap space”. In simple words, Morey will offer Maxey a $40 million annual salary after figuring out the Paul George situation.

Before Paul George walked out of the Clippers contract, the team had offered him a 3-year extension, similar to the one Kawhi Leonard signed. However, George expected a four-year max contract worth $221 million. Now that the star is a free agent, the Sixers, Orlando Magic, and LA Clippers (again) will lead the negotiation in the free agent meeting.

Nevertheless, it’s the Sixers, which is termed as the frontrunner of the trade. The team has a cap space of $60 million and it will still have $13.1 million space left, along with a mid-level exception of $8 million, as per Forbes. Importantly, if the Clippers go for a max contract with PG-13, then they might have trouble figuring out the $200 million offer for the rising star.

Can Tyrese Maxey land a max contract worth $245 million from the Sixers?

Well, the star had all the opportunities to land the max contract after his rookie season contract. After getting drafted in the 21st pick in 2020, Maxey worked his way up to get his first All-Star call-up in the last season. At the same time, a lot of fans expected the star to earn the All-NBA honor in the same season, but the star didn’t make it to the cut. Importantly, many felt that the rising star was snubbed of his honor.

However, the snub did make an impact on his max contract. Had he made it to the All-NBA team, Maxey could have raised his contract to $245.5 million worth a 5-year contract. Unfortunately, the snub capped the contract at $204.5 million. Notably, the Sixers truly had a blessing in disguise with the snub.

If at all, Maxey cracked the $245 million-worth contract, then the Sixers couldn’t have dreamed of roping in Paul George into the side. In the meantime, there is also another question. Are the Sixers doing right by going all-in for PG-13? Considering the star’s inconsistency and injury woes, will the City of Brotherly Love backtrack at the last moment? Let us know in the comments below.

Before you go, do not forget to check out Shaquille O’Neal’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato, to open up about the infamous Shaq-Kobe feud. Keep checking this space for more such updates.